Welcome to Newsletter XTRA, where everything we couldn’t fit into the main Global Newsletter has its moment to shine.
This month we cover actions in Berlin, Canberra, Cape Town, Christchurch, Copenhagen, Dhaka, Dublin, Kinshasa, Lake Garda, Le Havre, London, Melbourne, New York City, Palma, Sydney, Toulouse, and Turin.
18 FEB | Cape Town, South Africa: Red rebels in the frame!
3 MAR | Global: Young protesters across the world took part in the Global Climate Strike. Top: Edinburgh, Scotland. Centre: Dhaka, Bangladesh. Bottom: Sydney, Australia, where more than 2,000 marched.
17 FEB | Turin, Italy: Activists occupied the entrances to the headquarters of the main newspapers, La Republica and La Prensa, and the national television station, RAI, in Turin. For about two hours, at the entrances of the three buildings, a screen showed the interviews and surreal statements of various politicians, including the Italian prime minister. “These are the words of those who have denied the very existence of the climate crisis and have let people die at sea fleeing lands that have become uninhabitable,” explained one activist. "So we decided to bring them inside the editorial offices, because this is what newspapers and television should be talking about."
26 FEB | Gambia: Environmental activists held their quarterly beach clean-up along 65 km of the Gambian coastline, together with ‘impeccable’ partners from Banjul, Bakau, Fajara, Bijilo, Brufut, Tanji, Tujereng, Sanyang, Gunjur and Kartong communities.
3 MAR | Germany: 220,000 people took to the streets across Germany in rallies called jointly by FridaysForFuture and striking trade unions. Together they demanded radical climate action and a just transition for everyone. This is what democracy looks like!
15 FEB | Berlin, Germany: Last Generation activists blocked the Mühlendamm Bridge in the German capital. Twelve rebels sat down in the roadway, nine glued on. The group also poured concrete on the road, a novel tactic which a spokesperson described as a ‘more meaningful’ use of the material than building new climate-damaging infrastructure.
27 FEB | Canberra, Australia: Rebels disrupted business as usual at the Canberra headquarters of the fossil fuel lobby group APPEA (Australian Petroleum Production & Exploration Association). It was part of solidarity actions held across Australia to mark the 1-year anniversary of the catastrophic floods in northern New South Wales, the most expensive disaster in Australian history and in insurance terms the second most costly in the world in 2022.
28 FEB | Toulouse, France: A hundred rebels and other activists carried out an action at the head office of the Pierre Fabre Group to highlight the pharmaceutical giant’s involvement in the planned A69 Toulouse-Castres motorway.
27 FEB | Dublin, Ireland: Irish rebels denounced fossil fuel investment outside the offices of Black Rock while colleagues glued themselves to the revolving door of the office building.
20 FEB | London, UK: Together with activists from Plastics Rebellion and XR Fashion Action, rebels disrupt London Fashion Week. They poured fake oil from giant bottles of Coca-Cola (Fashion Week’s sponsor) and brandished banners green-shaming the corporation (it’s the world’s worst plastics polluter).
22 FEB | London, UK: Members of Christian Climate Action protested outside the Houses of Parliament against a proposed new coal mine in Cumbria.
14 FEB | New York City, USA: Showing their love of Earth on Valentine’s Day, rebels held a non-violent action to pressure Citigroup to stop investing in fossil fuel expansion. The bank is the world’s second-largest financier of fossil fuels after JPMorgan Chase, and has invested $285 billion in oil and gas since the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement. Photo: Gabriele Holtermann
14 FEB | Copenhagen, Denmark: Activists from XR Denmark and Scientist Rebellion took direct action against Danske Bank to denounce its investments in fossil fuels. The bank’s carbon footprint is equivalent to the internal emissions of the whole of Denmark. Activists threw money and oil on the bank's floor.
21 FEB | Lake Garda, Italy: Two concerned citizens carried out an action on Lake Garda. The island of San Biagio, also known as Isola dei Conigli (Island of Rabbits), is about 200 metres from the lake shore. It is reachable on foot during the summer when the water level drops, but this year due to severe drought since last year San Biagio can be reached even in February. Lake Garda’s water level is more than 50-60 centimetre lower than its seasonal average and the regional Environment Agency has estimated a drop in water reserves for the region of 44%.
3 MAR | Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo: Climate strike activists demonstrate outside a TotalEnergies service station.
17 - 18 FEB | Le Havre, France: Rebels from several XR groups in Normandy demonstrated against the planned TotalEnergies gas terminal at the port of Le Havre.
22 FEB | Palma, Majorca, Spain: About 20 rebels and other activists held a rally to support - with criticisms - the Citizen Assembly of Majorca, which started deliberations in November 2022. They are concerned that limitations of the process mean the assembly will not be sufficiently transformative.
7 FEB | Melbourne, Australia: A colourful Rally for Forests held the state government to account for recent illegal logging in Victoria's precious remnant forest. An Australian Supreme Court order enforces the 'precautionary principle': If in doubt, don't log!
1 MAR | Sweden: A rebel mother and doctor wore a bright orange cape with the message ‘No more oil companies in ski sport’ to highlight the role of Swedish oil company Preem in sponsoring the 45 km Vasaloppet long-distance ski race.
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